Summit Headwaters Divide Application

On December 5, 2014 the Richfield Joint Recreation District Board (RJRD) of Trustees entered into two purchase and sales agreements with the Western Reserve Land Conservancy: the Clean Ohio Parcel and Non-Clean Ohio Parcel. The property is the land formerly owned by the Girl Scouts of Northeast Ohio. The Land Conservancy assisted in the writing and submission of a Greenspace Clean Ohio Grant for $1,089,000 which was awarded in August 6, 2015.

The Summit Headwaters Divide project consists of two parcels of land which make up approximately 125 acres in Richfield Township, Summit County. The northern 66.05-acre parcel has frontage along the east side of Oviatt Road and the 59.09-acre southern parcel is located north of S.R. 303; both areas are west of Broadview Road. The Property is comprised of portions of the following parcel numbers: 4800346, 4800347, 4800349.Richfield Joint Recreation District is seeking to acquire two parcels of real property totaling a 125-acre area (collectively, the "Property") in Richfield Township. The residents of Richfield Township and the Village of Richfield made land protection a priority through the legislation of the newly formed RJRD. Both local governments and their constituents recognized the unique opportunity to protect this Property and took action at a time when other former scout camps have been sold to buyers with no conservation mission, often with disastrous results.

The Property includes wet meadows, mature canopy cover, riparian forests, old field and 5,873 linear feet of several unnamed tributaries and headwater streams of the Rocky River, and is located in the ecologically important East Branch of the Rocky River watershed. Natural Resource surveys on the Property recorded sightings of a sharp-shinned hawk, an Ohio Species of Concern; a red-headed woodpecker, a Species of Special Interest, and; the State Threatened/Potentially Threatened Ladies' Tresses plant. Also found on the Property were ten different first-time records of different moth species in Summit County.

Mature forests on the Property provide excellent habitat for native species and provide a buffer from storm flows for the Rocky River watershed. Water quality throughout the watershed is protected and enhanced through preserving pervious surfaces that retain water in flooding events and filter storm flows before releasing them via groundwater into the watershed.

The Property also connects to existing greenspace via a Richfield Township park that connects to the Cleveland Metroparks Hinckley Reservation. Connecting greenspace allows for regional and local trail connections, wildlife corridors, and provides access to schools for educational purposes. Now acquired by RJRD, the Property is open to the public for passive recreation activities such as hiking, biking, photography, education and monitoring.​